How do Claros and Dittofeed compare?

Both are MIT-licensed open-source lifecycle email tools you can self-host. Dittofeed uses a visual journey builder, Postgres + ClickHouse + Temporal, and supports email + SMS + webhooks. Claros uses prompt-defined flows compiled by an LLM, requires only Postgres, and is email-only.

Which is easier to self-host: Claros or Dittofeed?

Claros has a smaller operational footprint: one Docker image and Postgres 16. Dittofeed requires Postgres, ClickHouse, and Temporal. Both offer Docker Compose setups for getting started.

Compare

Claros vs Dittofeed: two open-source approaches.

Both are MIT licensed. Both are self-hostable. The differences are architectural, not philosophical.

What this comparison is about

Dittofeed is an open-source customer engagement platform, licensed under MIT, with a visual journey builder, email and SMS support, and a cloud offering at $75/month for up to 10,000 unique users (with overage at $0.004/user for 10K-100K, $0.002 for 100K-500K, and $0.001 for 500K+). Self-hosting is free. Their stack is Postgres + ClickHouse + Temporal (TypeScript).(Source: dittofeed.com/pricing, retrieved August 7, 2026)

Claros and Dittofeed are closer in spirit than any other pair on these comparison pages. Both are MIT licensed, both prioritize self-hosting, and both serve lifecycle email. The differences are in architecture and scope. Claros is email-only, Postgres-only, and prompt-defined. Dittofeed is multi-channel, analytics-oriented, and visual-builder-first.

Why choose Claros over Dittofeed?

Claros

Smallest possible stack. One Docker image plus Postgres. No ClickHouse, no Temporal, no extra services to back up.
Prompt-defined flows. Describe a flow in plain English and get a deterministic JSON plan. No canvas wiring.
AI-drafted content. The Brain drafts emails with your LLM key and holds them in an approval queue. Dittofeed has no AI content generation.
Built-in lifecycle model. 7-state machine, engagement depth, and 4x4 retention grid track contacts automatically.
Email-only focus. Less surface area, less configuration, if email is all you need.

Infrastructure footprint

Dittofeed

Postgres
ClickHouse
Temporal

Claros

Postgres

Fewer moving parts means less to monitor, back up, and upgrade.

Who should stay on Dittofeed

You need SMS or multi-channel messaging alongside email.
Your team prefers a visual builder for designing automations.
You need embeddable components or multi-workspace for your own customers.
You want an analytics engine (ClickHouse) for event querying at scale.
You are comfortable running Postgres + ClickHouse + Temporal.

Dittofeed is a good project. Both are MIT licensed and both let you self-host for free. The choice is about which architecture and workflow matches your team.

At a glance

	Claros	Dittofeed
License	MIT	MIT
Infrastructure	Docker + Postgres	Postgres + ClickHouse + Temporal
Cloud option	Planned (not available yet)	$75/month (10K users included)
Flow definition	Natural-language prompt, compiled by LLM	Visual drag-and-drop journey builder
AI capabilities	Drafts content, approval queue, BYO LLM	None
Channels	Email only	Email, SMS, webhooks
Lifecycle model	Built-in 7-state machine + retention grid	Custom segments (low-code builder)
Template system	AI-drafted or fixed-content templates	Notion-like editor + HTML/MJML + Liquid

Dittofeed data from dittofeed.com and dittofeed.com/pricing, retrieved August 7, 2026.

Three commands on your own server.

Self-hosting is the only way to run Claros today. Install in about five minutes and send your first real email from your own server.

git clone https://github.com/claroshq/claros.git && cd claros
docker compose run --rm install
docker compose up -d

Install Claros View on GitHub

No LLM key needed to start.Full installation guide →